The sample currently includes 360 linked sets of birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted children (hereafter referred to as “adoption triads”). The infancy and toddlerhood assessments have been completed as part of the first phase of funding (2002–2007), and we are currently assessing participants in the preschool and school entry periods as part of the second phase of funding (2007–2012). An additional sample of 200 adoption triads is being recruited in a separate study (in which the recruitment and assessment methods mirror the original study) that will enhance the measurement of prenatal factors and add DNA collection for the full sample of 560 adoption triads (DA020585, NIDA, NIMH, and the Office of the Director, U.S. PHS). The EGDS investigative team is interdisciplinary, consisting of experts in developmental psychology, behavioral genetics, sociology, psychiatry, and preventive intervention.
